ADC “Memorial” in partnership with the PromoLEX (Moldova) has submitted to the 92th session of the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination Alternative report that point out the existing discrimination of ethnic minorities in Moldova.

After the 2011 review of Republic of Moldova on the implementation of the Convention on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, the UN CERD urged the Government to improve its situation related to prejudice and intolerance towards ethnic minorities, hate speech and hate crimes. To fulfil obligation under the CERD and other international and regional standards, Moldova undertook legal and institutional measures.

However, despite these significant progresses in creating an adequate legal framework, ethnic minorities are still very often discriminated, victim of hate speech and violence and the existing legal framework is rarely efficiently implemented. People who use hate speech and discriminating speech consider that their opinion is covered by the law on freedom of expression. The impunity on hate speech was obvious during the 2016 presidential campaign when one of main candidates publically used homophobic and gender hate speech in order to denigrate a woman candidate. Such hate speeches can quite often be seen in the media mostly towards ethnic minorities. In the end of year 2016, hate speech tremendously increased because of false rumors concerning Syrian refugees coming to Moldova. Moldova counts a concerning number of hate crimes related to ethnic discrimination that are most of the time not properly investigated. Discrimination is quite often based on racial stereotypes; this especially concerns Roma people whose rights are violated; discrimination in the field of education goes along with high poverty, social isolation, and unequal access to jobs.